On Saturday, over 2.5 million people across the U.S. joined together for the Women's March, the biggest inaugural protest in history, to send a message to the incoming administration that "women's rights are human rights."
But one marcher, Ericka Hart, wants to make sure that we remember to really include all women when we're speaking out against injustice. On Saturday, Hart attended the Philadelphia Women's March, where she gave a powerful, rousing speech inciting us all to get more intentional about inclusivity.
"We have to stop being complicit in the same systems that gave Donald Trump platform to sanction and normalize sexual assault," Hart said in her speech. "No rallying at this magnitude happened for the 20+ trans folks who were murdered last year. Or the two trans women killed this year. Or when Sandra Bland was murdered."
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Hart, a breast cancer survivor, also chose to give her speech while topless, showing the scars she got from her double mastectomy — something she also did at Afropunk in order to raise awareness for breast cancer amongst people of color.
Speaking to Refinery29, Hart said that intersectionality is necessary, now more than ever.
"Intersectionality ensures that we listen to our each other's experiences beyond our personal understanding," she said. "Intersectionality takes time and forces us to be intentional in our inclusion. Intersectionality centers those who are most marginalized, those who are always fighting for their lives regardless of who is president."
Hart's speech is an important reminder that we still have a long way to go when it comes to inclusivity, and that we need to make sure that our feminism doesn't exclude others. Watch her full speech above.